Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1887-03-25
How We Saved the Navy.

A great many foolish things were done
during the war. A great deal of good
blood was spilled without the slightest
reason for it, and money was %squandered,
and thousands OF soldiers put to unneces-
sary toll and danger and discomfort, with
out the least apparent prospect OF any good
coming from it.
These truths are stated, rot in a fault
finding way, but in order TINT the famous
Red River expedition of the spring OF 1864
may be set down at the head of the list, as
ill-conceived, useless, laundering, and dis
| creditable.
All this may be said without casting the
blame on any particular one Of the Cen
erals who accompanied the expedition.
Their battles have been fought over and
over again on paper, and we will not Judge
where the fault lay, that some twenty-five
or thirty thousand good soldiers had to re-
treat before an enemy inferior in numbers,
with the unmerited stigma of defeat to fol-
low them into history. Blunders were
made by the Generals-dreadful %blunders-
but we will not try to FIX the responsibility.
There was stout fighting done by all the
troops, both Eastern and Western, and Sa-
bine Cross Roads and Pleasant Hill were
by no means Confederate victories, al
though our army was compelled to fall
back to Alexandria.
The great weakness of the whole cam
paign was that it was ever commenced at
all. AS soon as Grant, in command of all
the armies, learned of this silly expedition,
he sent orders countermanding it; but the
thing had gone so far that his orders never
reached us until we were almost back to
the Mississippi.
twenty-five thousand good soldiers, the
heroes of Vicksburg and Port Hudson, sent
Off almost beyond civilization, away up in
to the pine woods of Northwest Louisiana,
where there was nothing to be gained, moth
ing to be held, to hunt around after an m
pushed enemy!
They could have done about rs much
good to the Union cause if they had taken
q tour into the pine woods of Michigan.
I had an opportunity, the year after the
close Of the war, to ask General Banks if
he designed this movement. He replied
that he did not; but that suggestions aud
hints came to him in such a way from
Washington that he clearly understood
what was wanted. So the expedition was
made; and when it proved a failure the
Washington people stepped out and left
some Of the Generals to be s%capegoats; and
then, as stated, severe blame belongs TO
some of the Generals for their almost Grim
inal carelessness-and, in brief. we will
ACato II NuOlO "1OtGICu uuSlu0SS MUeTS
history leaves it, in an inextricable state.
Our soldiers, East and West, fought and
suffered nobly, and illustrated the great ca
pacities of the volunteers. They should
have no quarrel over it.
But there was one episode in that wretch
ed expedition in which every soldier in that
army may take the highest pride. 1t was
the rescue of Admiral Porter's whole fleet
from capture ut Alexandria. Nothing like
this achievement occurred anywhere else
%duringthe war. 1t was an exploit standing by
itself, SO novel, SO apparently impossible,
that the people have never understood it,
and never half appreciated the great serv-
ice. Perhaps we may make it q little
clearer.
On the 25th of April the army entered
Alexandria in good order, on the retreat.
1t was not pursued by the C~onfederates:
but when We marched out on the 18th of
May to continue the retreat, we found them
between us and the Mississippi, and had to
fight our way out. Between these dates
batteries had been planted on the Red
River below Alexandria, and steamboats, had
been sunk and burned. With our commu-
nications thus cut off from all points be-
low, the question will be asked, W hy did
the army remain eighteen days at Alexan-
dria, instead of instantly moving and scat
tering the host lie forces in the way?
The answer gives title to this sketch.
1t was that we-might save the navy.
Exact figures are not just now accessible;
but 1t may be stated that Admiral Porter
brought up the Red River from the Missis-
sippi a dozen good gunboats, which went
far up above Alexandria. They guarded
the numerous fleet of steamers that brought
supplies along for the army; they shelled
the woods along the way when anything
suspicious appeared; and some of them lad
some lively fighting on their own account
above Alexandria, with attachments Of
Taylor's army that tried to capture them.
They got back othat place-or TO the shall
lows in the river above it-ahout the sam